Highlights
- Salt River Project reported roughly 17,000 customers without power at the storm's peak in Maricopa County.
- Heavy winds tore part of the roof off a Mesa apartment complex near U.S. 60 and Dobson Road.
- By 5:30 a.m., at least 7,000 SRP customers remained without power as utility crews continued restoration.
- The storm system pushed west overnight toward Peoria, Surprise and Sun City, bringing the possibility of hail.
A surge of moisture out of the Gulf of California sent a wall of dust and strong winds into the Phoenix area around 9:30 p.m. Wednesday, knocking out power to thousands and causing structural damage across the East Valley, Arizona's Family reported.\n\nSalt River Project reported roughly 17,000 customers without power in Maricopa County at the storm's peak, with more than 1,000 additional customers affected in Pinal County. By around 5:30 a.m., at least 7,000 SRP customers in the Valley remained without service. Arizona Public Service reported outages affecting more than 700 customers in the Valley and an additional 300 in Gila Bend.\n\nHeavy winds tore part of the roof off an apartment complex near U.S. 60 and Dobson Road in Mesa. Downed trees were reported in both Gilbert and Phoenix. In Tempe, crews worked overnight to repair storm damage at Marcos de Niza High School.\n\nThe storm system continued moving west overnight toward Peoria, Surprise and Sun City, bringing high winds and the possibility of hail. The event is consistent with a broader pattern of intense haboob activity this monsoon season, which PBS NewsHour and 12News also confirmed independently.
Utility crews are expected to continue restoration and cleanup efforts across the Valley through Thursday morning.
Sources
Every factual claim in this article traces to one of the sources below. See how we work for the editorial process.
- AZ Family (3TV/CBS5) retrieved 20/08/2026 13:25
- pbs.org retrieved 20/08/2026 13:25
Authored by The Scottsdale Signal. Drafted by AI from primary-source material under our beat-specific editorial guides; reviewed by humans before publish under our five-gate process. Sources retrieved at 20/08/2026 13:25. Every claim traces to a source.
